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Abu Dhabi celebrated New Year’s Eve with fireworks and tens of thousands of gathered onlookers across the UAE capital. Accompanied by incredible pyrotechnic effects, the fifteen-minute fireworks display at the New Year’s Eve Countdown Village mesmerised the crowd as they joined in the festivities at the specially designed outdoor venue on the Abu Dhabi Corniche. Arab superstars Hussain Al Jassmi and Tamer Hosny, and comedian Ali Al Sayed joined the celebrations for the countdown.

Ahlan Business Class Lounge by Dubai International Hotel has been awarded the Priority Pass Middle East & Africa Airport Lounge of the Year Award. Now in its 13th year, the awards are based on ratings provided by Priority Pass members and recognise excellence within the world’s largest independent lounge membership program that includes more than 1,000 airport lounges, in over 500 cities, and is this year celebrating its 25th Anniversary.

Master developer Nakheel and AccorHotels have signed a management agreement for the 252-room ibis Dubai Jumeirah Village Circle. The hotel will cover 126,000 square feet across 16 floors. It is expected to open in 2021. The agreement, inked by Nakheel chairman Ali Rashid Lootah and Olivier Granet, managing director and chief operating officer for AccorHotels Middle East & Africa, is the third collaboration between the two companies. Raffles was announced as the brand for the luxury hotel and residences at PALM360 on Palm Jumeirah, and Nakheel’s 251-room hotel at Dragon Mart, which opened in 2016, is also managed by AccorHotels, under the ibis Styles brand.

London’s original Italian fine-dining restaurant, Scalini, has opened its kitchens in Dubai’s Four Seasons Jumeirah, as the resort’s newest dining destination. Established in London in 1988, Scalini played an influential role in the rise of Italian trattorias throughout the UK and won the hearts of several renowned celebrities, including Kate Moss, The Beatles, Johnny Depp, Jude Law, Cheryl Cole, Cesc Fabregas and Simon Cowell, amongst many others.

AccorHotels is rebranding a prominent landmark hotel in Jordan to Le Grand Amman – Managed by AccorHotels. The property consisting of 298-rooms and 67 well-appointed serviced apartments was launched in partnership with Iskan Co. for Touristic & Hotel Investments. A welcome addition to Jordan’s rapidly evolving tourism and travel industry, the luxury property is set to become Sofitel Amman following the first phase of refurbishment towards the end of 2019. Upon completion, this will mark the debut of Sofitel Hotels & Resorts in Jordan.

Turkish Airlines and Airbus signed an MoU to acquire 20+5 optional A350-900 aircraft. The agreement was signed at the Élysée Palace, Paris, during Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s official visit to France with French president Emmanuel Macron. Turkey is an integral part of the Airbus supply chain for almost 20 years, being a partner in all Airbus aircraft programmes, including the prestigious A350 XWB. While Airbus focusses on the continued development of long-term cooperation projects with Turkey, the Turkish aeronautical industries progressively have embarked and built-up a remarkable portfolio of high capabilities and skills over the last 10 years.

Jumeirah Messilah Beach Hotel & Spa, Kuwait’ idyllic resort, was named the Leading Luxury Beach Resort and Leading Business Hotel by World Luxury Hotel Awards last year. Room rates start from KD70 ($232) with breakfast for two at the all-day dining restaurant Garden Café for the winter season.

Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing has partnered again with Indian superstar Shah Rukh Khan. While the first video, which took YouTube by storm last year, featured Shah Rukh Khan surprising residents and visitors around Dubai, this year Shah Rukh Khan explores what he considers to be his second home and takes viewers on a fascinating, multi-faceted journey through the city of endless possibilities. The newly launched 2.0 #BeMyGuest video marks the first-ever collaboration between Shah Rukh Khan and acclaimed Bollywood director Kabir Khan.

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TTN is the most established trade publication in the Middle East distributed on a controlled circulation basis to members of the travel and tourism industry.

Published monthly by Al Hilal Publishing and Marketing Group, the region’s foremost trade publisher, TTN is aimed at professionals in the industry, from travel agents to airline and hotel personnel.

TTN provides in-depth and extensive coverage of relevant issues in the Middle East and North Africa as well as in other parts of the world. Travel related news, analysis, and new appointments together with information on up-coming exhibitions, marketing and promotional campaigns are presented in an innovative and striking colour tabloid.

Every issue also contains a collation of international and regional news and topical features of interest to readers.